Tail wheel installation



F. N. DICKERMAN TAIL WHEEL INSTALLATION Aug. 7, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 5, 1946 INVENTOR.

Fred N. Dickermah l' n nu AT TO RN ET Aug. 7, 1951 F. N. DICKERMAN TAIL WHEEL INSTALLATION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 5, 1946 INVEN TOR. F/ec Al. /'cker'man AT TORNE( ...5.... 5. .(11.41(WII.I\III.VIII.LvwwlnlllinvI 460 HHM/nc C Y showing the upper end of the Patented Aug. 7, 1951 TAIL WHEEL INSTALLATION Fred N. Dickerman, Nichols, Conn., assigner to I United Aircraft Corporation, East Hartford,

Conn., a corporation of Delaware Application January 3, 1946, Serial No. 638,853 claims. (o1. 26d- 64) This invention relates to landing gear for aircraft, and is particularly concerned with tail wheel and nose wheel landing gear units of the oleo pneumatic type in which the wheel has a castering action.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved oleostrut for tail and nose wheel installations of this type having means for preventing the extension of the wheel under static load beyond a position where it has favorable castering characteristics.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved oleo strut for a landing gear having means for reducing the effective area of its piston before the oleostrut has become extended to the point where undesirable castering eiects appear.

A further object is generally to improve the construction and operation of airplane nose and tail wheel assemblies.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become evident from the following description of a preferred form of the inven- Y tion shown in the accompanying drawings.

In these drawings,

Fig. 1 is a typ-ical airplane tail wheel installation illustrating the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the oleo strut of Fig. 1 showing the strut fully compressed;

Fig. 3 is a still more enlarged sectional view strut in further detail;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the oleo strut fully extended as would be the case when the airplane is approaching for a landing; and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Figs. 2 and 4 showing the position of the oleo strut under static load.

As herein shown, a tail wheel I0 is rotatably mounted in a wheel fork I2 having a shank I4 swivelled in a wheel housing I6 which comprises one link in a tail wheel operating linkage. The linkage further includes two short drag link struts I8 and 20 pivoted to the housing I6 at vertically spaced points 2| and 22 and pivoted at their opposite ends to a xed part of the airplane fuselage 24 at a common point 26. The housing I6 is further pivotally connected at 28 to one of the telescoping elements of an oleo pneumatic strut generally indicated as A, the other element of which is pivotally connectedat 30 to a depending operating arm 32 on a shaft 34. The shaft 34 carries a sector gear 36 which meshes with a similar gear 38 on a parallel oper- CII ating shaft 4l). The shaft 40 carries apulley which is driven by an actuating belt 42 to move the arm 32 through an angle which approaches from the position shown to swing the tail wheel linkage upwardly into a retracted position within the fuslage 24. In thisretracted position the tail wheel I0 occupies the dotted position lila shown in Fig. 1.

The tail wheel assembly is shown in full lines in Fig. l in the static position, i. e. in the position which it occupies when the airplane is on the ground. In this position the oleo strut A acts as a shockabsorber and is movable between a fully compressed position and a fully extended position corresponding to the positions 10b and Inc, respectively, of the wheel I 0. When the airplane leaves the ground the oleo strut extends by gravity into` its fully extended position in which the tail wheel I0 occupies the position IIlc from which it is moved into its retracted position by the pilot.

An undesirable castering characteristic occurs in an airplane tail or nose wheel particularly when, as is frequently necessary, its operating linkage is constructed with short drag link struts, such as the struts I8 and 2D, in an effort to conne the installation to a limited space. In such an installation, the included angle between the ground and the drag linkage is large, a condition which results in relatively large changes in caster angle of the spindle of the wheel yokewith accompanying changes in extension of the oleo strut.

When an airplane equipped with a tail wheel assembly, as illustrated, is pushed backward on the ground, and the tail wheel yoke I2 swivels so that the wheel III trails toward the .forward end of the airplane, the load on the oleo strut A is greatly reduced, owing to the change in ratio of the moment arms of the load on the wheel and the load in the strut about the pivot point 26 for the assembly. Since the extension of the oleo is proportional to the load on it, the oleo immediately extends farther and thereby further reduces the load acting on it. The result is that when the airplane is pushed backward the oleo strut extends until it reaches the limit of its extension in which the wheel I 0 occupies the position Illc of Fig. 1.

Thereupon, two undesirable conditions exist. First, as the airplane is rolled backward over even the least obstruction a tension load is imposed on` the oleo and no shock absorber is provided for the airplane structure; secondly,

has an end iittingby which it is connected to theV other elements of the tail wheel linkage. The upper element B includes the end tting Moonstituting the support for the upper end of the outer concentric oleo cylinder-litV and the inner perforated tube 48...'1helatter carries an an`` nular member VEat] at its lower end which closes the space between tube 48 and a cylinder 54 of piston element C. The lower piston element yC includes the end =fitting 52 which carries cylinder 54 within which the member 50 has a working nt, and carries at. its upperfrend an annular piston 56.

4VThe lower tting also carries an imperforate axial metering vpin S3 which extends through an im- ,perforateportion Eil of tube i3 and provides an Y annular metering passages! (Fig. 5) between this -lower imperforate end portion ci tube 48 i and the pin 53. ,4.

floating member is also provided in the oleo strut which cooperates withzboth' telescoping Velements B and C; This floating member includes a cylindrical tube 2- which lies within the inner periphery oiv piston 58 of the cylinder 54, the piston 55 having a sealed running t on the eX- ternal` diameter of this intermediate tube E2, suitable packing lbeing provided to effect a huid tight seal at this point. The tube .E2 also carries a piston .66 at its upper end having packing rings v6l which make a fluid tight sliding t with the outer cylinder 46 of the upper oleo element B. 'I'he piston GG'is limited in its upward movement by an annular shoulder 8S on the outer cylindei` 45 and is limited in its downward movement by a shoulder l0, best shown in Fig. Z, which is formed by an inner cylindrical tube l2 screw- :threaded into the lower end portion of outer cylinder 4t. A stop ring lll is provided on the external surfacel oi' tube B2 at its lower end which prevents upward displacement of the oating member in the extended position of the strut in the event that the lcylinder has not been'lled with iiuid. Y

The fittingdli Vwhich is shown in detail in Fig.

' V3 has a filling port 'SS through which oil or other hydraulic fluid is introduced into the cylinder.

This'port is closed by a screwthreaded plug 78 which carries an air inlet valve ySil.- With the strutin thenposition shown in Fig. 2, in which it is fully compressed, it is lled withhydraulic `fluidV up to' the level 82. VThe plug 'i8 is then screwed into the port i6 and air is admitted through valve d until the strut assumes the position shown in Fig. 5 when the airplane is on the ground, in which the'strut is in its static position corresponding to the full line position oi Wheel I in Fig. l. It will be noted that in this position the freely floating piston 65 is bottomed on stop 70. The only effective area on the lower oleo element now being acted upon toward the further extension oi the strut is an area ,equal to the internal cross sectional area of tube 52, i. e. the

aseasis the Fig. 5 position.

When the `airplane is approaching for a land-'- ing, however, with its tail wheel downythe strut under the forceof gravity is extended into theA Fig. 4 position in which the piston 5t is bottomed against theV member 5S.

the passage 6 l. Y

The airplane taxies on the ground withthe strut in the position shown in Fig. 5 with thepis- Y ltonV 5S' abutting the underV surface of the freely kfloating piston 6E. `The strut during its remainl ing travel into the fully compressed position of Fig. 2 acts as a shock absorber, Valthough an extremely heavyvload would have to beencountered .to compress it'in'to the position shown in Figl 2,

since in the Fig. Y5 position the entire area of the freely floating piston GS is acted upon by the air pressure to, resist further compression ofthe strut.

Varea oi the aperture 'il in the member 62, and

the total force applied against this area by the iiuid lpressure inthe oleo is not sufficient to exlt will be evident that asia result of this ini;

proved construction an oleo 'strut `has been'pro-Y videdj lor anairplanertail or nose wheel installation having means for preventingjthe extension yof the strut under static load beyond a position where the Wheel has avorablecastering characteristics.r also, the usual bumping andA bouncing Vof artaxiing airplane, due to a'too irullyextend'ed oleostrut on the tail wheelh'as beenelirninated.

Vlt will be noted that these improvements fin castering characteristics are provided without `decrease in the amount of air pressure applied to the strut; and hence without decrease in yshock absorbing properties of the taiilwheel'supporting mechanism ir'iflandingfr In addition a compact self-contained strut has been provided, i. e. a strut which is not dependent upon'the atmosphereror outside sources of adapted to contain a compressible iluid, afpiston element cooperating with said cylinder element having anannular apertured piston, a `floatingY assembly comprising "a telescoping tube extending through the aperture in said piston having an open lower end land an annular apertured piston at its upper end which cooperates with said cylinder, and stop means on the inner wall of Said cylinder for arresting said assembly in a 'partially extended position of said strut. i

2. A shock absorbing oleo strut'having a Cylinder assembly comprising spaced inner and 'outer tubular membersY forming concentric annular chambers', a cooperating dual piston mech=V anism in said outer chamber comprising a piston and atubrular member telescoping therewith and carrying asecond piston at its free end, said sec-V p ond piston-having an areaJ comprising a substantial part'of the cross sectional area of said outer chamber, and fixed stop means in said'outer chamber' for Aengaging said second piston at an intermediate point in the extending movement of said strut. Y

3. A shock absorbing oleo strut having a cylin- As the airplane lands, lthe strut is compressed at a rate determined by Y Y Vthe iiow of oil past the metering pin'fthrough y -der assembly comprising inner and outer tubular members forming concentric annular chambers, said inner tubular member having means providing fiuidcommunication between said chambers, a cooperating .dual piston mechanism in said outer chamber comprising a first piston and a telescoping element incorporating a second piston at its free end, said second piston having an area comprising a substantial part of the cross sectional area of said outer chamber, and stop means on a Wall of said outer tubular chamber for er1- gaging said telescoping element at an intermediate point in the extending movement of said strut While permitting further extension of said rst piston beyond the arrested position of said telescoping element.

4. A shock absorbing oleo'strut having a cylinder assembly comprising inner and outer tubular members forming concentric annular chambers, said inner tubular member having a metering orifice at its lower end and having means provding uid communication between said chambers, a cooperating dual piston mechanism forming a closure for the open end of said chambers including a metering pin reciprocable into and out of said metering orifice and first and second pistons reciprocable in said outer chamber, said rst piston having a iiuid tight sliding fit on the inner surface of said outer tubular member and having a concentric tube depending in said outer chamber, and said second piston having a fluid tight sliding t on the outer surface of said depending tube, and abutment means on said outer 6 tubular member for limiting the extending movement of said first piston.

5. In a shock absorbing device, two relatively movable telescoping assemblies adapted to be connected to the elements whose movements are to ,be cushioned, the first of said assemblies comprising a cylinder and a concentric perforated tube rigidly mounted therein and forming two concentric chambers, said tube having a passage at its lower end for passing iiuid therethrough, the second of said assemblies including a concentric metering pin adapted to cooperate with said passage in said tube, a concentric axially apertured piston movable with said pin, and a, floating piston reciprocable within the outer chamber of the first assembly having a telescoping c0nnection with said iirst mentioned piston including a depending tubular extension extended through said piston aperture.

FRED N. DICKERMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,289,728 Giles Dec. 3l, 1918 1,474,222 Akers et al. NOV. 13, 1923 1,819,414 Gruss Aug. 18, 1931 1,991,212 Herrmann Feb. 12, 1935 2,008,094 Chester July 16, 1935 2,174,312 Cleveland Sept. 26, 1939 2,197,474 Johnson Apr. 16, 1940 

